A new way to see India: river cruises, including a US$66,000, 51-day trip touted as the worlds lo

“For millennia, our inland waterways have been instrumental for trade, economy and spiritualism.”

Life on inland waterways tends to proceed at a gentle pace, and passengers appreciate cruises for their tranquillity and opportunities to interact with people living along the riverbanks. Most cruise vessels are state-of-the-art, with amenities such as spas and gyms, and an attentive crew.

The following journeys reveal India in a new light.

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1. From Varanasi to Dibrugarh (51 days)

The newly built MV Ganga Vilas began her maiden voyage on this route on January 13, seen on her way by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

At 51 days and 3,200km (1,990 miles) long, this is touted as the longest river cruise in the world. Having set sail from the city of Varanasi, in northern India, the Ganga Vilas will cruise along the Ganges , the Brahmaputra and 25 other rivers, travelling through five states and into Bangladesh.

Along the way, it will pass through cities such as Kolkata, Patna and the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, before docking in Dibrugarh, in India’s northeastern Assam state.

The vessel has been designed in art deco style, and its 18 suites have floor-to-ceiling windows to make the most of the views.

Like all Antara vessels, the Ganga Vilas has a reverse osmosis plant to produce drinking water, is fitted with a hospital-grade silencer to keep noise levels down, uses an oil-water separator when discharging waste into the river, has a sewage treatment plant on board and uses biodegradable toilet paper. Land-based excursions are conducted in electric rickshaws.

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Each day offers onshore and offshore experiences, as passengers pass more than 50 tourist spots, including Unesco heritage sites like Kaziranga National Park, colonial Dutch and French locations in Bengal, silk weaving operations and the Sundarbans – the world’s largest mangrove forest.

Folk dances and music performances will be laid on, as will feasts featuring fresh river fish, Bengali sweets and chokha liti – a type of wheat flour cake from the Indian state of Bihar.

Cost excluding tax: US$66,000 for a couple in a cabin for the entire trip, all inclusive. Itineraries lasting 21 and 31 days are also available.

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2. The backwaters of Kerala (at least 2 nights)

Cruises operated by CGH Earth, a group that owns boutique hotels in South India, take guests across Kerala’s Vembanad Lake on a round trip from Alleppey to Kumarakom. The journey is operated by one of seven traditional kettuvallam – barges once used to transport grain and spices – that have been refurbished into houseboats with modern amenities, powered by solar energy.

The vessels have either one or two cabins and each is crewed by a pilot, mechanic and chef. The speciality dish on the trip is Vembanad karimeen – freshwater fish – cooked in local style with chillies and coconut, with red rice and banana fritters for dessert.

The world that slowly slides by is one of fishermen at work with their Chinese nets, toddy tappers (workers who climb trees to tap them for sap and other resources), coir (coconut fibre) factories and paddy fields.

Small canoes can be called in to take guests along the canals that pass through lakeside villages for a slice of local life.

Cost per night, excluding tax: single cabin 28,000 rupees; double cabin 39,330 rupees based on double occupancy. Prices include breakfast.

3. On the Brahmaputra from Guwahati to Jorhat, or vice versa (8 days)

These cruises, operated by Adventure River Cruises, are conducted on the MV Mahabaahu, a boat with 23 rooms decorated with local art and crafts.

Herons, pied kingfishers, white-throated kingfishers and serpent eagles can be spotted on an optional safari conducted on a smaller boat.

Passengers can take part in yoga sessions, listen to talks by naturalists, or watch cooking demonstrations as the cruise makes its way up the Brahmaputra River to Majuli – the world’s largest river island, according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

This used to be the cultural capital of Assam, where a form of Hinduism called Vaishnavism originated. Today it is characterised by small tribal villages on stilts, mask makers and wetlands.

Passengers get the opportunity to meet Mishing tribespeople, who live on the riverbank in chang ghar, homes built on a raised platform.

The ship then crosses the river to Neamati Ghat, 17km from the city of Jorhat, from where a road section of the trip takes in Sivasagar, a town resplendent with temples and forts that was once the centre of the Ahom kingdom that ruled Assam for six centuries, beginning in the year 1228.

The journey ends at Jorhat, the tea capital of Assam, where guests can explore tea gardens and meet the workers.

Cost: Prices start at around 336,000 rupees for a superior cabin, based on double occupancy.

4. The upper Ganges, from Kolkata to Varanasi (14 nights)

The double-decker Katha Pandaw was built in 2012 in 19th-century colonial style. Refitted in 2019 for expedition sailing in India, it has 14 luxurious rooms.

The cruise starts in Kolkata on the Hooghly River – a tributary of the Ganges – to the city of Chandannagar, a French possession until 1950. The Katha Pandaw continues to Kalna, a town known for its terracotta temples and Shiva temple with concentric rings made up of 108 lesser shrines.

The next stop is the brass-working village of Matiari, in West Bengal, where passengers can interact with the craftsmen.

Next is Murshidabad, a historic city once home to wealthy merchants and today known for its architecture – from whitewashed, colonial-era structures to ornate palaces.

The cruise enters the Ganges through the Farakka Barrage and proceeds to the eighth-century Buddhist site of Vikramshila, one of ancient India’s most important learning institutions.

Sailing waters inhabited by Ganges river dolphins, the cruise passes through Bhagalpur, a centre of silk weaving; and Barh, a town known for its Hindu temples.

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Because of the challenges of navigation and the pontoon bridges along the remaining stretch of the Ganges, guests must disembark at Nalanda – the site of a fifth-century Buddhist university – and journey overland to Varanasi, spending three nights in luxury hotels along the way.

Cost: from US$6,752.

Most of these cruises run between October and April.

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